SPINACH AND SALMON PIZZA.

After a warm, busy Saturday it is time for tea/ dinner and what better than a homemade pizza. Ingredients......2 small flat breads, 1/4 cup of tomato paste, fresh baby spinach leaves, 210gm can of pink salmon( drained and flaked ), 125gm of crumbled feta cheese, olive oil for drizzling, lemon wedges for squeezing, cracked black pepper. Preheat your oven to 200deg C. Place the flat breads on an oven tray and bake for 2 minutes, then turn the flat breads over and repeat the process. Spread the tomato paste over the base of each flat bread. Top with the fresh baby spinach leaves, the flaked salmon, crumbled feta cheese and a healthy sprinkle of cracked black pepper. Lightly sprinkle with oil. Place in the preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes . Remove and squeeze with a little lemon juice. Serve immediately.

THE PREPARATION OF A 10 DAY BREAD STARTER

What is a starter?... A starter is a is a bacterial or fungal culture used to initate fermentation and flavour development. Ingredients ....1/4 cup of warm water, 1 packet of insatnt dry active yeast (7gm), 1 cup of plain flour, 1 cup of castor sugar, 1 cup of milk. Do not use any metal spoons or bowls. In a small non metal bowl, combine the 1/4 cup of warm water and the dried active yeast. Set aside until bubbly.( about 10 minutes in a warm environment ). In a large non metal bowl mix together the flour, castor sugar. Stir in the cup of milk and the yeast mixture,( it will be lumpy ). Cover loosely and leave on your bench until bubbly. Pour the starter in a large ziplock bag. You are now on a wonderous food journey.... Seal the bag and squish, squash and mush until well combined. Let stand at room temperature overnight. Repeat the squishing process until day 5. Do not refrigerate the starter, if air gets in the bag, let it out. It is normal for the starter to rise and ferment.

CHOUX CHEESE BREAD

This is a cooking class lesson in one......for this recipe you need pastry flour. What is pastry flour, you ask?. It is a flour that is light in gluten, you can use gluten free plain flour or if you only have plain flour in your pantry, measure out 125gm of plain flour into a mixing bowl, remove 1 tbs and add 1 tbs of cornstarch/ cornflour, sift together to make sure the mixture is well combined. This combination of flour is also known as cake flour. Ingredients......1 and 1/2 cups of water, 1 tsp of salt, 130 gm of butter/ marg, 250 gm of pastry flour, 5 eggs lightly beaten, 250gm of Gruyere cheese, cubed, 30 gm of grated chedder cheese. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Cover a large oven tray with baking paper. Place 1 and 1/2 cups of water, salt and butter/ marg in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. When boiling add all the flour and combine with a wooden spoon. Cook, stirring until the mixture leaves the side of the saucepan and remove from the heat. When cool add the beaten eggs a little at a time, stirring quickly with a wooden spoon. Add the Gruyere cheese cubes to the pastry and mix well. Turn the mixture out onto the lined baking tray. Sprinkle with the grated cheese. Cook for 60 minutes or until golden on the surface.

FRUIT MINCE CHEESECAKE SLICE

Ingredients......12 plain sweet biscuits, crushed,30 gm of butter/ marg, melted, 250 gm of cream cheese, 1/2 cup of castor sugar, 2 tbs of plain flour, 3 eggs lightly beaten, 400gm of fuit mince, 1/2 cup of natural full cream yoighurt, finely grated rind of 1 lemon. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Grease and line a 20cm square cake pan. Combine the biscuit crumbs with the melted butter/ marg and press into the base of the prepared pan. Refrigerate until firm. Beat together the cream cheese and castor sugar until smooth, beat in the flour and finally the eggs. Stir in the yoghurt, fruit mince and lemon rind. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes until firm in the centre. Remove from the oven and allow to cool and then chill thoroughly before slicing into portions.

JELLY CHEESECAKE

Ingredients for the base.....230gm of plain sweet biscuits, 150gm of butter/ marg (melted). Filling......110gm of cream cheese, 3/4 cup of castor sugar, 375ml can of evaporated milk, chilled, 85 gm packet of of lemon jelly crystals, 1 cup of boiling water, 1 tbs of lemon juice, 300 ml of whipped cream and the grated zest of 1 lemon. Preheat your oven to 160 deg C. Dissolve the jelly crystals in the boiling water and set aside to cool. Grease a 20cm springform pan. To make the base, mix the biscuit crumbs with the melted butter/ marg, then press into the prepared pan, over base and up around the sides. Cook in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, then put in the fridge to cool. To prepare the filling, beat the cream cheese and sugar until combined. In a separate bowl beat the evaporated milk until very thick. Now add the cream cheese mixture to thickened evaporated milk and beat in to incorporate. When the jelly mixture is cold stir in the tbs of lemon juice. Add the jelly mixture to the cream cheese mixture and stir well. Pour the filling mixture over the biscuit base. Refrigerate until set, about 4 hours. To finish off the jelly cheesecake, spread the whipped cream over the cake and top with grated lemon zest.

SAVOURY COB LOAF

This is not only great party food, it is also a great entree served with drinks and nibbles. Ingredients.....1 round loaf of bread, 250gm of cream cheese, 300ml of cream, 300gm of diced bacon pieces, 2 spring onions finely chopped, 2 cups of tasty grated cheese. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Slice off the top of the cob loaf and set aside. Pull out the soft bread inside the loaf, breaking it into pieces. You can leave the pieces fresh or bake them on an oventray in the preheated oven until golden brown, your choice. To make the dip.....mix the cream cheese with the cream until smooth. Mix in the chopped bacon pieces, spring onions and grated cheese. Place the hob on a double sheet of elongated foil. Spoon the mixture into the hollow loaf. Place the top of the hob loaf over top. Wrap the loaf in aluminium foil and bake for 75 minutes. Remove from the oven , remove the foil and serve with the pieces of bread on the side for dipping.

PORCUPINE MEATBALLS

This recipe is a real trip down memery lane for me. My young children loved these. Ingredients.....500gm of beef mince, 1/2 cup of rice, 1 onion finely chopped, 1 medium carrot grated, 1 stick of celery thinly sliced, 1 tbs of minced garlic, 1 x 425gm can of condensed tomato soup, 1 cup of water. Preheat your oven to 180 deg C. Grease an ovenproof dish/ casserole with cooking spray. Place the beef, rice, onion,carrot, celery and minced garlic in a bowl. Use your hands to combine the ingredients well and shape into small balls. Place the meatballs in the prepared dish. Place the tomato soup and 1 cup of water in the mixing bowl and stir to combine. Now pour the mixture over the meatballs, cover and cook for 50 minutes. Serve as you wish , I used to serve with mashed potatoes, nowadays I serve the meatballs with steamed green beans.